Rhubarb & Ginger Crumble

I love making different types of crumbles and cobbler pies, there are so many variations you can make. My favorite is still my oldest recipe of apple crumble wich I got from my mom many years ago and it never fails to impress, and I think I can go as far as saying that it is my all time favorite dessert but in combination with some vanilla ice cream of course. But back to this recipe, the key ingredient in this recipe is the stem ginger, wich goes really well with all kinds of desserts. You can buy the stem ginger in all the mayor supermarkets now.

1kg rhubarb stalks, cut into 5cm pieces
1tbsp water
4 tbsp caster sugar
1tbsp chopped Preserved stem ginger, in syrup

For the crumble:
100g butter
100g caster sugar
200g plain flour
50g toasted flaked almonds

6 - 8 servings

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

2. Place the rhubarb chunks on a shallow roasting pan, sprinkle with the water and 4 tablespoons of caster sugar. Bake for 10 minutes.

3. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the ginger.

4. Reduce the oven temperature to 190°C.

5. Tip the rhubarb mixture into a baking dish about 4cm deep.

6. To make the crumble, combine the butter, sugar and flour in a bowl. Rub with your fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

7. Sprinkle the crumble evenly over the rhubarb. Bake for 10 minutes until golden.

8. Allow to cool slightly before serving. Serve with ice-cream or double cream

Icelandic Oatmeal and Blueberry Pie

This is an old icelandic classic called "Hjónabandssæla" which means "happy merriage". I do not know if this is the secret of a happy merriage but it sure is tasty...:) Mein frau Rakel is the creator of this recipe so don´t forget to praise her in your comments.

200g butter, room temperature
170g oatmeal
170g plain flour
100g caster sugar
1tsp bicarbonate
blueberry jam

Preheat the oven to 200˚C.

Add the butter, oatmeal, flour, sugar and bicarbonate into a large bowl and work together with your hands…..or you can add all the ingredients into a food processor and pulse until you get a fine sandy textured dough.

Take 2/3 of the dough and push into a buttered cake dish with your hands.

Spread the blueberry jam over and then just sprinkle the rest of the dough over the jam.
Bake for 30 minutes in the middle shelf.

Sesam Thins

These sesam thins are a great snack between meals and also fantastic to serve with a chocolate mousse. But be carefull when you make these becouse you can burn your self pretty badly if you not carefull......so no kids allowed in the kitchen when you are making these sesam thins.

5 dl caster sugar

8 tbsp of water
200g sesam seeds

Pour the sugar and 8 tbsp of water onto a hot pan. Let the sugar melt into a golden brown caramel. Sprinkle over the sesam seeds and continue cooking until dark brown.

Pour onto a oiled teflon sheet and spread with a knife to ½ cm thickness....or thinner if you can. Let it cool down for 15 minutes and then break into pieces. Lovely to serve some chocolate mousse with the sesam thins

Panna Cotta with Mango

This recipe is in honor of my first book........"Mín Ítalía", wich you can not buy at the moment, but if you are lucky you will maby get one for your birthday...:) This is one of 50 recipes in this book and the theme is......... Italian cooking at it´s best!! My friend Marius Johannessen took this picture as others in this book and he does a fantastic job.

You can check out my new book at http://www.blurb.com/books/576488

350ml heavy cream

120ml milk

3 gelatin sheets

1 fresh mango, peeled and cubed

2 tbsp vanilla sugar (caster sugar mixed with seeds from vanilla pod)

1 tbsp honey

4 servings

1. Pour the cream and milk into a heavy saucepan. Add gelatin sheets.

2. Place pan over medium heat and stir until gelatin dissolves. Do not boil. Add sugar and honey and continue to stir until sugar is melted.

3. Just before cream and milk come to a boil, remove from heat. Pour mixture through a strainer to remove foam and to ensure a velvety consistency.

4. Let cooked cream cool down and add 3/4 of the mango. Pour into wine glasses and chill in refrigerator for six hours.

Gelato Affogato

8 scoops vanilla ice cream

4 shots hot espresso, unsweetened
1 handfull toasted flaked almonds

For each serving, place 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream into a glass. Pour hot espresso over ice cream and sprinkle the toasted almonds on top. Serve immediately before the ice cream melts

Chicken Mozzarella with Two Potato Mash

This is my new favorite chicken recipe at the moment. I got inspired by Gordon Ramsay when he was cooking a similar dish on one of his shows. This is such a easy and simple dish to make and i promise that your family members will not be dissapointed.
My brother took this picture when he was visiting from Iceland a few weeks ago and he was very impressed with this dish.

4 chicken breasts, boned, skinned & pounded thin
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 eggs
1 tbsp milk
60g plain flour
200g dry breadcrumbs
Olive oil
1 fresh ball of mozzarella
50g grated Parmesan

For the tomato sauce
Olive oil
2 shallots
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
Approx 250g cherry tomatoes

1/2 dl sherry wine
½ teaspoon dried basil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the potato mash
250g potatoes

250g sweet potatoes
1dl full fat milk

50g butter

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

2. Peel and boil the potatoes in salted water for 12 minutes until tender. Drain well and set aside.
3. Season the chicken fillets on both side with a little salt and pepper. Lightly beat the eggs together with the milk. Dust each chicken breast in flour, then dip in the beaten eggs and finally coat in the breadcrumbs.

4. Sauté the chicken breasts in a little hot olive oil until golden brown - approximately 2 minutes on each side. Drain the cooked chicken on kitchen paper, then remove to a baking tray.

5. To make the tomato sauce heat some oil in a heavy based pan. Add the shallots and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened. Add the tomatoes and basil. Allow the tomatoes to soften. Then add the cherry and simmer for 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

6. Spoon a little tomato sauce over each chicken breast. Top with a round of mozzarella, and sprinkle with the grated parmesan. Bake in the oven for approximately 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked and the cheese is melted and golden.

7. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher. Add the butter and milk and continue to mash together. Season with salt and pepper.

8. Serve each chicken breast with a dollop of mashed potato.